Voting-booth



(No Model.

LE. E. BARRY.

VOTING BOOTH.

No.- 516,292. PatentedMaf. 13, 1894.

mum We canumr.

Iulumam. n. c.

NlED TATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD EDMUND BARRY, OF ELK GROVE, CALIFORNIA.

VOTING-BOOTH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 516,292, dated March13, 1894. Application filed December 11, 1891. Renewed February 12,1894- Serial No. 4991 74- (N0 model To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD EDMUND BAR- RY, of Elk Grove, in the countyof Sacramento and State of California, have invented cer-- tain new anduseful Improvements inVoting- Booths; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same.

Thisinvention relates toa new and improved tent or booth, and has forits object the production of a cheap and simple voting booth, which willeffectually conceal a voter while marking his ballots preparatory tovoting, and which can be easily removed and closed or knocked down fortransportation.

The invention comprises the detail construction, combination andarrangement of parts, substantially as hereinafter fully set forth andparticularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:Figure 1 is a view in perspective of myimproved tent or booth, a portion of the covering being broken away.Fig. 2 is a side view thereof, with the cover removed. Fig. 3 is a viewshowing a slight modification.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the frame which in plan view issquare or oblong. This frame is composed of corresponding front and backsections embracinga series of four vertical posts a connected togetherby bars a and upper and lower side-bars a a loosely secured at theirends to said Vertical posts. The lower front and rear bars a haveprojecting ends a through which screws are passed for fastening the tentto the floor. In lieu of this formation, the ends of said bars a can bebent upwardly and secured to the posts, and fastening screws (1 may bepassed through said bars a, as shown in Fig. 3. To the vertical posts aof the back section are rigidly secured the ends of two cross-bars a,forming an X. To the sides of these posts of the front and back sectionsof the frame are connected the upper and lower ends of bracebars a". Attheir lower ends these bars are pivotally or loosely secured to posts a,while their upper ends are held rigid by removable nutted bolts a. Byremoving these nutted bolts the bars 61 03 131 be swung into a verticalposition against the post a of the front section.

B, B, designate two corresponding crossbars, which at their rear endsare loosely secured to the vertical posts of the back section, whiletheir front ends are secured to the posts of the front section by nuttedbolts 12. By removing these bolts cross-bars B can be let down so as tofit between the posts of the back section. To these bars B is secured aboard C, forming an inclined desk, and adjacent to the upper edgethereof is a second board 0 occupying a horizontal position and forminga rest for the pens and inkstands.

D is a cover for the tent'frame entirely concealing the interiorthereof. This cover may be composed of any desired material, but canvasis preferably employed, the same being formed in separate sections e.Each section has holes or eyelets 6' along its edges for engagement withhooks or buttons (2 projecting from the bars and posts composing frameA.

By means of these hooks or buttons the cover is held in place.. Thatportion of the cover over the entrance to the tent is composed of twosections, the adjacent edges of which overlap, so that a voter withinthe tent is entirely concealed from view. In lieu of this arrangementthe top bar a of the front section can be hinged at one end so as topermit the canvas to be swung like a door, see Fig. 3. Thus it will beseen that by removing the nutted bolts of holding bars a and the bolts11 of cross-bars B, the entire frame can be swung so as to be closeddown so that the front and back of the booth will be in contact, thepivoted end bars a a enabling the booth to be so closed, and thus readyfor shipment or storage. A tent or booth thus constructed is extremelysimple and inexpensive, and being portable can be readily and easilytransported from place to place, and at elections serves as a completesafeguard I to the voters as against all interference by others. Eachvoter can, unseen, mark his ballot or ballots on the desk which formspart of, or is secured to, the frame-work of the tent.

I claim as my invention 1, The herein-described improved voting boothconsisting of the front and back vertical posts, the end-bars pivotallyconnected to said posts, the inclined brace-bars, as a ,piv-

connected to said back posts, the cross-bars, as B, pivotally connectedto said back posts and detachably secured to said front posts, theboards supported by said cross-bars, and a cover for the booth removablysecured thereto, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

EDWARD EDMUND BARRY.

Witnesses:

J. E. TERRY, N. S. J ACOBS.

